Kansas City Southern profit beats on increased petroleum shipments to Mexico

[October 18, 2019]  (Reuters) - Railroad operator Kansas City Southern <KSU.N> on Friday reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit, helped by an increase in refined fuel products and liquid petroleum gas shipments to Mexico and lower fuel and equipment costs.

 A freight train of the Kansas City Southern (KCS) Railway Company is pictured in Toluca, Mexico October 1, 2018. REUTERS/Edgard Garrido

The company's results come at a time when U.S. freight volumes have seen a decline amid a global economic slowdown partly due to President Donald Trump's trade spats with key partners like China and Mexico.

Operating ratio, a measure of operating expenses as a percentage of revenue and a key metric for Wall Street, fell 2.7 points to 60.7% from a year ago.

A lower ratio means more efficiency and higher profitability.

Net income available to common stockholders rose to $180.1 million, or $1.81 per share, in the third quarter ended Sept.30, from $173.5 million, or $1.70 per share, a year earlier.

Analysts, on average, had expected quarterly earnings of $1.79 per share and revenue of $734.9 million, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Revenue rose 7% to $747.7 million.

(Reporting by Dominic Roshan K.L. in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)

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